Boris Johnson tells Essex MP to resign over alleged lockdown party
An Essex MP has been told to resign by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson over claims he may have broken lockdown rules. Sir Bernard Jenkin, the MP for Harwich and North Essex, is alleged to have attended a drinks party held by Commons Deputy Speaker Dame Eleanor Laing.
The reported event held by Dame Eleanor, the MP for Epping Forest, is said to have happened in December 2020 when London was in Tier 2 measures restricting indoor mixing.
Sir Bernard has been accused of "monstrous hypocrisy" by Mr Johnson given the Essex MP's role on the Privileges Committee, which has been investigating whether the former Prime Minister lied to MPs with his partygate denials.
In a statement reported by The Express[2], the former prime minister told Guido Fawkes: "Bernard Jenkin has just voted to expel me from Parliament for allegedly trying to conceal from Parliament my knowledge of illicit events.
"Now it turns out he may have for the whole time known that he himself attended an event - and concealed this from the Privileges Committee and the whole House for the last year.
"To borrow the language of the committee, if this is the case, he 'must have known' he was in breach of the rules. He has no choice but to explain his actions to his own committee, for his colleagues to investigate and then to resign."
Mr Johnson also wrote to committee chair Harriet Harman demanding that she clarify whether she checked that panel members had not attended such events before the inquiry began.
He said that if the report was true, Sir Bernard was "guilty of flagrant and monstrous hypocrisy". "I really find it incredible - and nauseating - that this matter is emerging at this stage of your process," Mr Johnson said.
Boris Johnson resigned as the MP for Uxbridge last week after receiving the findings of the cross-party committee, which has four Conservative members, which he branded a "kangaroo court".
MPs on the panel are understood to have rejected his defence that senior officials advised him Covid rules and guidance had been followed in No 10. The report is expected to say he would have faced suspension from Parliament for at least 10 days, which is enough to trigger a by-election.
Sir Bernard has been contacted for comment.
References
- ^ Family devastated by death of 'truly wonderful' Essex student Grace O'Malley-Kumar after Nottingham attacks (www.essexlive.news)
- ^ The Express (www.express.co.uk)